What Is The Best Underlayment For Vinyl Flooring

If you ve chosen to go the vinyl path you re probably wondering about the best underlayment for vinyl plank flooring.

What is the best underlayment for vinyl flooring.

Vinyl underlayment is an optional add on to click lock vinyls that are 4mm or thicker. This is the layer that you see and walk on. Meaning if you re going to install vinyl plank flooring over tile vinyl flooring and even. With certain types of flooring the underlayment can be just as important as the floor itself.

Just under the visible floor covering is a layer of some kind of material usually only about 1 4 or 1 2 inch thick. While vinyl flooring is known for its resiliency it would be a major mistake to overlook the underlayment. If you need and are allowed to use additional soundproofing felt cork and foam will all work but cork is best because it won t harm or stain the flooring. Wear layers and topcoats can protect the surface of your floor but underlay adds a layer of protection to the bottom of your boards or tiles.

Vinyl plank flooring is a floating floor so it is important to have underlayment across the entire surface of your flooring. We recommend using a vapor barrier on a cement subfloor to prevent moisture from seeping up and sitting beneath your flooring. This is the finished visible flooring surface such as hardwood planks carpeting ceramic tile or vinyl. The good news is that vinyl floor products often ship with attached cork underlayment.

An underlayment that offers more cushioning is armstrong flooring quiet comfort. It s more important that the underlayment dampens sounds and feels comfortable. There s no need for a moisture barrier underlayment on plywood. Like plywood or osb flooring you can forgo the underlayment entirely if you prefer.

A vinyl flooring underlayment will not be as thick as a laminate or hardwood underlayment. If you re installing new vinyl flooring over an existing floor such as hardwood tile laminate or vinyl then cork or foam make good choices. Vinyl floors that are glue down or loose lay will not need a vinyl underlayment as these floors will be installed directly over the subfloor. For our discussion of underlayment a wide range of flooring comes under the heading of hardwood.

The airguard 5 in 1 floor underlayment is an ideal option if you re shopping for floor underlayment for laminate. Installing new flooring is a costly enterprise so you want to get it right the first time around.